Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants)

RAVE

” Skinless & Boneless ‘Applewood Smoked’ in Extra Virgin Olive Oil “

This canned salmon is a Trader Joe’s top 10!

“Lightly Smoked Salmon” is the square pink can. Find this with canned tuna, sardines and about three other kinds of canned salmon. Its popular so its been Sold Out on occasion.

Now there is nothing wrong with the other cans of salmon. They are fine, pretty much like any canned salmon you’ve tried before.

This one however WAY BETTER, off the charts better. Think “gourmet canned salmon“.

I am crazy about this can of salmon as are many others (see the Comments below) Word has gotten out about this stuff. At times you may see it has sold out (be patient, it does get restocked when they get more).

Now the very first time I saw this can I was both intrigued and even slightly confused by the name… What does “Lightly Smoked Salmon” in a can even mean? The first thing to know about this is basically ignore the name. “Smoked”? No and this has nothing to do with what you or I think of when we see the words “smoked salmon”. What this actually is, is the best, I repeat “The Best” canned salmon you probably ever tasted.

Frankly I think that name choice wasn’t great. A better or more accurate name would have been something like “Chilean Olive Oil Poached Salmon”, or “Gourmet Canned Salmon” as that is exactly what this is.

This tinned salmon makes me think about those imported tins of canned fish made by high quality Portuguese and Spanish producers. Like Ortiz’s canned tuna ($23/lb) and the like, cans and jars of which I see at gourmet grocery vendors like Zabar’s and Fairway. $18 for a jar of canned tuna? Yup. That stuff is not Chicken of the Sea.

As you can see when one opens this can, you see an appetizing piece of skinless, boneless salmon. It was cooked in Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The label says this is a “Product of Chile”. I’ve since learned that Chile, after Norway, is the world’s second largest producer of farmed salmon. Overall the quality appears high.The salmon has had all the skin and bones removed (some canned salmon has both). The fish was cooked in olive oil. Think “olive oil poached salmon”.

That golden orange-y liquid is a decent Chilean EVOO mixed with the salmon’s juices. Its delicious. The salmon is moist and flaky. It’s got both a wonderful texture and flavor. I would guess the olive oil is from Chile. Sure this is farmed Atlantic salmon (not wild) but its is Top Quality fish. About the word “smoked”, well “Applewood smoke” is listed among the Ingredients but honestly I don’t really taste any smoke flavor. Maybe it is so subtle in the background. It doesn’t matter. This stuff is really really good.

I opened a can the first time to review it. I found it so tasty I could not stop tasting it. I kept saying to myself “let me just just try one more bite” and suddenly I noticed the can was empty.

This can of fish makes a super easy almost instant lunch, dinner or healthy snack. Its got a whopping 21 grams of Protein.

That Golden Oil the fish is swimming in? I implore you to not dump it out. If you do that you will be making a mistake. That sauce is delicious. Its a built in sauce, a golden elixir that matches the salmon perfectly. It’s extra virgin olive oil mixed with the cooking juices now colored orange from the salmon, and its yummy, and just oozing with UMAMI.

I suggest you spoon the golden oil over the fish with perhaps a squeeze of lemon when you serve it. Ah, perfection. You could equally spoon some of this golden oil on top say the salmon a top salad greens, or boiled potatoes, or a rice bowl or what have you.

Basically this is a piece of poached salmon in a can. You can simply put it on a plate and you are done. Or on top of a salad or greens or a protein bowl…. Mashed up into an avocado with a little mayo and lemon. Voila, you have a delicious healthy meal with almost no effort. This salmon is wonderful as-is right out of the can. Try it on toast, or a toasted bagel, or on crackers. I found this is a perfect match with TJ’s great Norwegian CRISPBREAD for a Scandinavian style open faced sandwich.

This salmon is especially perfect for summertime heat or whenever you don’t feel like cooking. Mix a bit of mayo and lemon juice into this for lovely perfect salmon salad. The other night I didn’t feel like cooking. I found I had a nice ripe avocado I needed to use, so I just mixed a can of this salmon with a little mayo, lemon juice and some Peri-Peri sauce and spooned that into an avocado.

I ate this lovely avocado stuffed with salmon for dinner. It took me minutes to make and was so yummy.

RECIPE IDEA – Japanese Salmon Rice Bowl: I make this all the time. Put some fresh cooked rice in a bowl (if you have it, short grain) Now top it with this salmon, which you flaked up. Drizzle some of the Golden Oil over things. Sprinkle on a TJ’s Furikake seaweed seasoning and chopped scallions. Mix gently. YUM. Dinner! Optional: a sprinkle of Soy Sauce and a sprinkle of Toasted Sesame Oil. Maybe slices of avocado and cucumbers?

One serving contains 190 calories and a whopping 21 grams of protein. The 5 oz can has about 3.6 oz of drained salmon. It’s $3.69. Product of Chile. Great pantry item. I would gladly buy it again.

Can one put this away in your larder for a year or two to improve with age like the do in Spain? (canned fish improves with age like wine*) *Spain and Portugal have some bodegas which specialize in tinned fish and seafood which they keep for a year or two or three… Believe it or not the cans of fish improve with age like wine. Here’s a video of the late great Tony Bourdain visiting one of the most famous of these bodegas in Spain, eating cans of seafood and loving every bite…. EL ESPINALER